The Hero's Forsaken Princess
Chapter 147: Finding Allies

Chapter 147: Finding Allies

Commander Kevin instinctively stood up, wanting to approach Eve. But Rolando immediately stopped him.

"Commander, let’s wait. We don’t want to scare them away," he said, gripping Kevin’s elbow.

Kevin returned to his seat, his gaze still fixed on Eve.

"She must be Princess Esmeralda’s daughter. Without a doubt!" Kevin uttered with certainty.

Rolando bobbed his head.

Meanwhile, Alaric and Eve began eating their meal. They got hungry from climbing the valley peak earlier.

"Are we not inviting the others to join us?" Eve asked Alaric.

"They might be preparing for our journey tomorrow. You don’t have to worry about them. They can take care of themselves," Alaric responded, putting food on her plate.

"Can we follow you to the capital?" Eve blurted out.

"No. It’s dangerous. You and Gideon must stay here," Alaric firmly said. "Just wait for us."

Eve fell silent. She couldn’t hide her uneasiness about this mission.

After finishing their meal, Rolando and Commander Kevin approached their table. Alaric and Eve recognized the shopkeeper right away.

"It’s you, Mister!" Eve said in her elated voice. "Have you sent the message to Captain Alucard?"

Kevin and Rolando exchanged glances with one another.

"Yes. That’s the reason we came here. Can we invite you somewhere else to talk?" Rolando asked them.

"Yes!" Eve agreed.

Alaric leaned closer and whispered, "What if this is a trap?"

"I have nothing to worry about because you are here... with me," Eve replied, holding Alaric’s hand.

Alaric could only sigh helplessly.

"Follow us," Kevin butted in, leading them out of the tavern.

Kevin brought Alaric and Eve to Rolando’s house. He was living alone so they wouldn’t worry about other people overhearing their conversation.

"I’m Kevin, commander of Alucard’s army. My captain is not yet here. He set out on a journey. He will be back this week," he informed them.

"What is your proof that you are his comrade?" Alaric questioned him, searching for proof.

They had to be cautious. They were in an enemy’s territory. Betrayal and deception could happen anytime.

Kevin let out a soft chuckle. "Are you doubting me?"

"Yes! We have to make sure this is not a trap." Alaric retorted.

"I can tell that you are a warrior with a high-ranking position. Who are you?" Kevin asked, his eyes scrutinizing Alaric from head to toe.

"I’m her husband," Alaric simply replied, shocking Rolando and Kevin.

"What?!" Kevin gasped. "Our princess’ daughter is married to you?!"

"Are you a good man?!" Rolando asked him exasperatedly.

Kevin and Rolando looked so worried about Eve’s well-being. If she was Esmeralda’s daughter, they hoped Eve’s husband was a good man.

"Yes. He is a good person," Eve vouched for him.

"We should be honest with one another. Doubting each other will not be beneficial to us," Rolando said, trying to become a mediator between Alaric and Kevin.

Eve agreed. Without hesitation, she showed them her jade necklace.

"This is the proof of my identity. According to Annie, my grandfather, King Arthur, gave this to my mother."

Commander Kevin and Rolando teared up as soon as they saw the jade pendant. They quickly kneeled in front of Eve.

"It’s true! You are Princess Esmeralda’s daughter. Please... tell us what happened to her. Is it true that she was gone?" Kevin asked.

He didn’t know how they would face the truth of failing to protect Princess Esmeralda. They would feel useless.

"Yes. My mother is gone. But don’t blame yourself. It’s not your fault that she died." Eve wanted to console them.

"I’ll tell you what happened to her at the right time," she added. Since Alaric was there, she wanted to avoid talking about her mother’s death.

"Your Highness, do you really wish to reclaim the throne?" Kevin asked her expectantly.

"Yes. We are here to reclaim it. Let’s dethrone King Zaraki," Eve responded with determination.

"Our army consists of five thousand warriors willing to die for you, Princess Eve. In the name of our Captain Alucard Winslow, we will assist you in achieving victory!" Kevin pledged loyalty, expressing their desire to support Eve.

"We will be your sword, Your Highness!" Rolando chimed in.

Eve felt so happy to hear their full support.

"We’ve been ready to avenge King Arthur. We had been waiting for Princess Esmeralda. But since she is no longer with us, Princess Eve will become our new ruler. The only heiress of the throne." Kevin said full of hope.

"We hide from King Zaraki’s army. Little by little, we recruited men and women who were willing to fight with us. We are the loyal knights of King Arthur. We are waiting for our chance to strike back. We can’t do it without a member of the Goldwyn royal family. You are the missing piece, your Highness. Thank you for coming to us!"

Kevin shared with them their struggles and the story of how they bounced back after being defeated by King Zaraki’s knights.

King Zaraki’s betrayal stirred the whole kingdom. Even his subjects held a grudge against him. He killed every person who didn’t want to acknowledge him as their king.

King Zaraki executed every loyal servant of King Arthur. He didn’t spare their lives, afraid that someday they would rebel against him.

The tyrant ruler didn’t care about the poor. He was forcing them to enlist their young family members to be part of the army. He was going all out, waging a war against several kingdoms.

He conquered and invaded small kingdoms, putting them under his power. King Zaraki didn’t stop attacking kingdoms, holding princesses and princes as hostages.

Five kingdoms were now serving him as their new king. His next target was Kingdom Averion. He wanted to make an empire, uniting all the kingdoms in the continent.

"Your Grand Uncle is ambitious and greedy. He wants to be the King of all kings!" Kevin informed them.

"We are from Kingdom Averion. I brought a team. Our goal is to assassinate King Zaraki." Alaric revealed to them.

Kevin and Rolando were rendered speechless when they heard that.

"Are you serious? The castle is highly guarded. King Zaraki has elite bodyguards. It will be hard to assassinate him, especially if you are not familiar with the Zephyra’s castle structures. This is a suicidal move." Kevin lectured Alaric.

"Once you are in, you can’t get out alive! Don’t make a rush move. Let’s wait for Captain Alucard. We can help you using another method," Rolando suggested.

Alaric shook his head. "Do you intend to involve your five thousand warriors? No! Don’t do that. There will be bloodshed. Assassinating King Zaraki is the best move to minimize casualties."

"If ever we fail, you can do your own strategy. I will be more at ease now, knowing you are here to protect Princess Eve." Alaric expressed his honest thoughts.

Eve crumpled her face upon hearing that. "No! You won’t fail! Don’t think negatively."

"Forgive me, Princess. I didn’t mean to say that." Alaric apologized right away.

"Are you certain about this? You won’t change your mind." Kevin asked Alaric again.

Alaric nodded. "Yes. My team is ready for this. I’m also doing this for my wife."

Commander Kevin could only sigh in defeat.

"Fine. I won’t dissuade you."

Then he turned to Rolando. "Give him the map and blueprint of Zephyra’s castle. I can’t mobilize the army without Captain Alucard’s permission so this is the least I can do to help you."

Alaric’s eyes lit up at his remarks. "That’s what we badly need to strategize well. The map and structure of the castle will be a great help to my team. I really appreciate this, Commander Kevin."

Kevin nodded. "There is a hidden tunnel that you can use to enter the castle. King Zaraki is not aware of this. Captain Alucard used this passage to help Princess Esmeralda escape."

It did not take long before Rolando handed over the map and structure design of the castle.

"How long will it take for you to accomplish your plan?" Kevin asked Alaric so that they could also make a move if something happened to Alaric’s team.

"Five days... If you can’t hear from us, then that means our mission fails," Alaric said with a serious expression on his face.

"I understand. Use this to send us a signal if your team is in danger. We will do our best to rescue you." Kevin gave something to Alaric.

"I will send Rolando to monitor the castle. If you send a distress signal, we will know right away that your team is in danger."

Alaric nodded. "I will also be careful in sending the signal. King Zaraki might use this to trap you and your comrades. I really hope I will not need to use this firework stick."

Kevin chuckled, tapping Alaric’s shoulder. "You are so considerate and thoughtful, Alaric. You are worrying about us. Don’t underestimate us. We have ways to rescue you."

Princess Eve remained silent. She had conflicting thoughts as she listened to them.

’I don’t like this feeling. I’m scared.’ Eve thought, gripping Alaric’s hand tightly.